Book:  The Hollow (The Hollow #1)
Author:  Jessica Verday
Published:  September 1, 2009 from Simon Pulse
My edition/number of pages:  HC/513

Age group:  Young adult
Source:  Bookstore
Series?:  Yes.  First book.

When Abbey’s best friend, Kristen, vanishes at the bridge near Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, everyone else is all too quick to accept that Kristen is dead and rumors fly that her death was no accident. Abbey goes through the motions of mourning her best friend, but privately, she refuses to believe that Kristen is really gone. Then she meets Caspian, the gorgeous and mysterious boy who shows up out of nowhere at Kristen’s funeral, and keeps reappearing in Abbey’s life. Caspian clearly has secrets of his own, but he’s the only person who makes Abbey feel normal again…but also special.

Just when Abbey starts to feel that she might survive all this, she learns a secret that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her best friend. How could Kristen have kept silent about so much? And could this secret have led to her death? As Abbey struggles to understand Kristen’s betrayal, she uncovers a frightening truth that nearly unravels her—one that will challenge her emerging love for Caspian, as well as her own sanity.

When The Hollow was first released I rushed out to but it.  When I read some of the terrible reviews for it, I decided to wait.  Now I’m glad I did only because I don’t have to wait for the sequel to be released.

Abigail (Abbey) Browning refuses to believe that her best friend is dead.  She and Kristen spent all their time at the river.  There’s no way Kristen would fall in and drown.  Abbey knows something else must be up.  Unfortunately Abbey is distracted before she can uncover the mystery of Kristen’s disappearance.  This distraction comes in the form of a very cute boy with some secrets of his own.  Caspian is hiding something but does it have anything to do with Kristen or is it something entirely different?

I loved The Hollow but that doesn’t mean that I don’t have my complaints.  My main problem was the length.  I love big books but this one seemed to include a lot of unnecessary information.  I also felt that all that info led up to an unsatisfying climax.  I’m reading the second book right now to see where everything is going because the ending of the first left me wanting more, and not in a good way.

While I did have my complaints, I found myself enjoying the book.  I loved reading about Sleepy Hollow and the characters were pretty great.  Abbey was a bit emotional but what teenage girl isn’t?  Caspian was confusing which led to the emotions but I finally understood at the end and it was quite a surprise.  =]

Overall, The Hollow is, in my opinion, a great book.  I enjoyed the characters, the setting, and especially the story.  I can’t wait to see where Jessica Verday takes the story in the next book.

First line:  They said she killed herself.

Writing:  4

Characters:  4

Plot:  4

Ending:  4

Originality:  5

Overall:  21=B

Cover:  5=A++ (Very eye-catching!)